Denis Naughten (Longford-Roscommon, Fine Gael)
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Question 198: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the plans she has to ensure that there is a legal basis to the labelling terms non GM and GM free; the discussions she has had at European level on the issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27996/06]

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) is the competent authority in Ireland for the enforcement of EU legislation regarding food derived from Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) — generally referred to as GM food.

The authorisation and labelling of GM food within the EU is governed by the GM Food and Feed Regulation (EC No. 1829/2003). The labelling terms 'non GM' and 'GM free' are not defined in EU legislation and are used voluntarily by the food industry. However, the use of these terms is subject to Article 2.1(a) of the General Labelling Directive (2000/13/EC) which stipulates that labelling must not mislead the purchaser as to the characteristics of the foodstuff and, in particular, as to its nature, identity, properties, composition, method of production and manufacturing.

By carrying out regular surveys of the food supply, the FSAI monitors the level of compliance with GM food legislation and ensures that only authorised and correctly labelled GM ingredients are on the Irish market: a positive result of the FSAI GM food surveys to date is that while GM ingredients have been detected in a proportion of foods tested, no breaches of the EU GM food legislation have been identified.

In May of this year, the FSAI published the results of its most recent survey — the GM Food Survey 2005. In this survey a total of 60 food samples were analysed, with six samples being found to contain low levels of GM at less than the 0.9% labelling threshold provided for in EU legislation. However, three of these samples contained GM soya while carrying the claim 'made from non GM soya' on their label. The UK based company producing these foods has been identified in a number of FSAI surveys as carrying potentially misleading claims relating to non GM status, and despite representations by the FSAI, the problem has not been addressed. As a result, the FSAI has discussed this issue with the retail trade in Ireland and requested that a long term solution be developed to prevent the persistent misleading of consumers by these products. Ultimately, the accuracy of food labels is the responsibility of the food industry which must ensure that all food labels and claims are accurate so that consumers are not mislead.